what rights do perference shareholders have?

Answer 1

if the company goes bankrupt, preference shareholders rank before ordinary shareholders

Answer 2

Companies can have a variety of different types of shares, and dividends can by paid out of the company profits/reserves to the shareholders. The company can select on which type of share it wishes to pay a dividend.
Preference shares usually carry no voting rights within the company. If the company was to fold, preference shareholders would be the first to be paid off.

Answer 3

I think you mean preferred shareholders.

Essentially they have first "dibs" on dividends...they will be paid to prefereds before common shareholders (although they are below bondholders).

And this is from Wikipedia:

Rights

Unlike common stock, preferred stock usually has several rights attached to it:

* The core right is that of preference in dividends. Before a dividend can be declared on the common shares, any dividend obligation to the preferred shares must be satisfied.
* The dividend rights are often cumulative, such that if the dividend is not paid it accumulates in arrears.
* Preferred stock has a par value or liquidation value associated with it. This represents the amount of capital that was contributed to the corporation when the shares were first issued.
* Preferred stock has a claim on liquidation proceeds of a stock corporation, equivalent to its par or liquidation value. This claim is senior to that of common stock, which has only a residual claim.
* Almost all preferred shares have a fixed dividend amount. The dividend is usually specified as a percentage of the par value or as a fixed amount. For example Pacific Gas & Electric 6% Series A preferred. Unlike debt securities, however, a company is not legally required to pay preferred dividends and will not be in default for missing a preferred dividend payment.
* Variable preferreds are rare exceptions; their changing dividends depend on prevailing interest rates, or varying as a percentage of net income.
* Some preferred shares have special voting rights to approve certain extraordinary events (such as the issuance of new shares or the approval of the acquisition of the company) or to elect directors, but most preferred shares provide no voting rights associated with them. Some preferred shares only gain voting rights when the preferred dividends are in arrears.
* Usually preferred shares contain protective provisions which prevent the issuance of new preferred shares with a senior claim. Individual series of preferred shares may have a senior, pari-passu or junior relationship with other series issued by the same corporation.

The above list, although including several customary rights, is far from comprehensive. Preferred shares, like other legal arrangements, may specify nearly any right conceivable. Preferred shares normally carry a call provision, enabling the issuing corporation to repurchase the share at its (usually limited) discretion. Some corporations contain provisions in their charters authorising the issuance of preferred stock whose terms and conditions may be determined by the board of directors when issued. These "blank check" preferred shares are often used as takeover defense. These shares may be assigned very high liquidation value that must be redeemed in the event of a change of control or may have enormous supervoting powers.

Answer 4

if you are a shareholder? good! But you won't be in any meeting with the big chesse!